Suriname send Guyana back to League B with 5-1 thrashing

Guyana’s senior men’s national football team will return to League B in the next CONCACAF Nations League (CNL) Cycle in 2025, while their neighbours will enjoy the success of ascending to compete against the likes of USA, Canada, and Mexico following a night of contrasting fortunes for the South American neighbours.
Thousands of Surinamese fans flocked the Dr IR Franklin Essed Stadium on Tuesday night to witness the final CNL League A group stage clash, featuring the neighbours.
Not only were the boisterous fans rewarded with a thumping 5-1 victory, but the Dutch side also sealed their progression to the CNL Quarter-finals for the first time in the country’s history.
Guyana’s Head Coach, Jamaal Shabazz opted for a starting XI that featured Captain Liam Gordon, Goalkeeper Quillian Roberts, Leo Lovell, Jalen Jones, Nathan Moriah-Welsh, Curtez Kellman, Stephen Duke-McKenna, Nathan Ferguson, Reiss Greenidge, Isaiah Jones, and Omari Glasgow.

The excitement began almost instantaneously from the sound of the first whistle as Sheraldo Becker found the back of the net in just the third minute.
An almost identical strike was repeated by Becker in the 10th minute when Virgil Misidjan’s initial shot was saved by Roberts, to hand Suriname their second goal.
There was still a glimmer of hope for Guyana when Jalen Jones tapped in a set piece to pull one back for the visitors three minutes later.
However, Guyana were sunk further into trouble when Misidjan added his name to the score sheet for a 3-1 score by the half.
While Guyana struggled with their defence and finishing in the second segment, their opponents remained dominant, with Denzel Jubitana and Ridgeciano Haps finding the back of the net in the 51st and 69th minutes.
Following the clash, Guyana’s lone goalscorer Jones lamented the team’s inability to net their chances.
“First game, we should have taken our chances and we didn’t, you know, it cost us in the second half and obviously today, we needed a lot more goals and a clean sheet as well. It just wasn’t enough for us today,” Jones shared.
He added, regarding their hopes of turning the tides after his 13th-minute strike, “yeah, I mean we had to stay together, communicate and you know, just didn’t work out for us”.
Addressing the team’s relegation back to League B, Jones expressed the hope that the Golden Jags would learn from their mistakes.
“We got to learn from it, you know. We got relegated, so now we want to come back up. Just got to go again,” Jones said.
When the CNL returns in 2025, the Golden Jaguars will compete in League B, where a perfect run in 2023 secured their just-concluded League A campaign.